Trying new restaurants this visit. Am I making a mistake???

We left New Orleans in 1995 after living there 12 years. We try to go back every year at least once. It's so hard for me to not go back to my old haunts, but this year I am trying to add a couple of new ones.

We are getting in around 2pm Friday May 10th & leaving Monday around 3pm May 13.

For the old haunts, we are going to drop our bags at the hotel & try for a late lunch at Galatoire's. The other place we have to go is Coquette, the only problem is for what meal! We love lunch & brunch there, but have not been for dinner yet.

For the new places, I was considering Maurepas Foods, Sylvain, Martinique Bistro and La Petite Grocery. I haven't decided which meals where, but this is the list. Please give me some feedback as there are so many good restaurants in NO that I would be very unhappy to have a bad meal! Am I missing something really good from the list?

I just replied to another "moderately priced restaurants" post.Scan that post for some new ideas. There's a lot of new restaurants on that thread.

My only note about your list is, why La Petite Grocery? I've walked past and glanced at their menu several times, and there just doesn't seem to be anything too exciting about it.

There's a buzz around Maurepas Foods, so I think that's a great one to do. And, as for the other two, I don't really hear much about those, positive or negative. I guess in my circle, those aren't real popular haunts.

We were at La Petite Grocery last Wednesday for lunch. Here's what we had - mostly a bunch of appetizers, since we're light eaters - and liked a lot:cream of celeriac and shrimp soup, marinated anchovies, mixed greens salad, celeriac and apple salad, beet and crayfish salad (the only "meh" dish of the bunch), roasted cauliflower with fried capers, roasted Brussels sprouts with bacon, baked oysters in cornmeal. Decent bread, and a good but price-y wine list.

I can see why some might not find this exciting, but if you are into quality vegetables - they grow much of their own produce - and trying to avoid that good New Orleans gravy, this is a great restaurant. For dessert, we split a cornmeal cake, which was delicate and not too sweet. And also the cayenne ice cream, with dark chocolate sauce and praline'd peanuts - this was sublime!

Sylvain is pretty good, but I just can't deal with the bar atmosphere when I'm trying to eat, so have not really enjoyed this place.

Have been hearing good things about Wayfare, and are planning to try it this weekend during Freret St Festival.

Thanks manouche for the details. La Petite Grocery sounds just about right after some heavy meals. Just the cake & ice cream make me want to go there now! Love deserts that aren't too sweet plus chocolate & peppers together are wonderful.

Hey topeater - if you are still looking, you might have a look at Boucherie on Jeanette St, just off Carrollton Ave. We got sidelined there and never made it to Freret St!Mussels with Collard Greens in cider vinegar/duck reduction, Shrimp with grit Cake in some sort of unholy - but in a good way - light tasso gravy, Duck Confit with hyper-crisp skin. Cafe au Lait ice cream was very good, but they had run out of the chocolate-Thai chili pie...thank goodness.Just way too much good food in this town!

Maurepas Foods, Root, and revolution are my favorite restos in town right now. Sylvain is great, too. Definitely get drinks at MF and Sylvain. Martinique and La Petite are both good although I don't make it to either very often. Which meal where is up to you.